Ping, the failed Apple social network, to be dropped

Apple's social network for music, Ping, is expected to be dropped… (Apple )

Apple's social media network for iTunes, Ping, will be dropped by the company in the near future, according to a report.

Sources close to the company have said Apple will be leaving the social media realm and removing Ping in its next major release of iTunes.

If Apple is indeed planning to ditch Ping, the decision does not come as a big surprise.

Though chief executive Tim Cook said at D10 last month he wasn't sure whether or not Apple would kill the social service that launched in 2010, he did indirectly admit it wasn't working.

“We tried Ping, and I think the customer voted and said, ‘This isn’t something that I want to put a lot of energy into,’” he said, according to All Things D, which reported the news of Ping being dropped.

At the same time, Cook emphasized that it was important for Apple to be social.

“Things like this make our devices even more useful to people,” Cook said.

And that's where Facebook and Twitter come in.

The update that kills Ping will likely come in the fall, and it will probably coincide with the launch of iOS 6. In that version of iOS, Facebook will become integrated into Apple's mobile platform while Twitter will become even more integrated than before.

At its Worldwide Developers Conference keynote Monday, Cook said Facebook and Twitter will become part of its iTunes, App Store and iBookstore, essentially taking the baton from Ping.